Sign



0. W. HARMS July 26, 1938*.

SIGN

Filed April 26, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented July 26, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIQE 2 Claims.

This invention relates to signs. One of the objects of the invention is to provide a sign in which the display travels or is stationary and having novel features which tend to attract and arrest the attention of passersby. Another object is to provide a sign in which the letters or characters are transparent, whereas, the remainder of the face of the sign is opaque, whereby when the sign is illuminated from behind, the letters and characters forming the display will be perfectly clear, distinct and legible in the dark as well as in the light. Another object is to provide a sign with plate supporting members having spaced openings therein for the reception of plates which have cut-out portions outlining the letters or characters or are made transparent, and the surface portion thereof made opaque around outlines which define letters or characters. Another object is to provide a sign in which the character displaying plates are carried by a belt contained in a case and propelled by suitable means to pass by a sight opening in the front of the case, whereby a relatively long legend may be presented to persons looking at the sign. Another object is to provide character displaying plates which may pass around rollers or other belt carrying means. Another object is to provide means whereby the gaps between adjacent character displaying plates are covered so as to prevent any light from passing through the gaps between adjacent edges of the plates.

Other objects and advantages will appear in the course of this specification and, with all of said objects and advantages in view, this invention consists in the several novel features of construction, arrangement and combination of parts hereinafter fully set forth and claimed.

The invention is clearly illustrated in the drawings accompanying this specification in which:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a sign embodying one form of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section therethrough.

Fig. 3 is a detail, enlarged, fragmental front elevation of the plate carrying belt illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2.

Fig. 4 is a detaiL'enlarged, vertical cross-section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a detail, enlarged horizontal section taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 6 is a front elevation of a fragment of a modified form of plate carrier and illustrates two of the character displaying plates associated with said form of carrier.

Fig. 7 is a plan of the plates illustrated in Fig. 6.

in Fig. 8.

Fig. 11 is a detail, vertical cross-section taken on the line I l--l I of Fig. 10.

Fig. 12 is a detail, horizontal section taken on 10 the line l2-l2 of Fig. 10.

Fig. 13 is a detail, enlarged front elevation of one of the character display plates.

Fig. 14 is a horizontal cross-section taken on the line l l-l4 of Fig. 13. 15.

Referring to said drawings and first of Figs. 1

to 5 inclusive, which illustrate the invention applied to a sign in which the character displaying plates travel, the reference character [5 designates a rectangular case of any suitable construc- 20 tion, formed with a sight opening I? in its front wall l8. Rotatively mounted in said case adjacent each end thereof are rollers i9, 23 and I9, 28*, the rollers l9 being arranged in pairs as shown, and the rollers 20 being disposed in- 25 termediate those of the pairs. The rollers I9 2|] are disposed diagonally opposite each other at two corners of the case. Trained around said rollers is an endless belt 2! which carries the character displaying plates 22 and propels said 30 plates along the sight opening in the front wall of the case where they are exposed to View. One

of the rollers, as for example the one designated by I9, is a driving roller and is rotated by a motor 23 which may be in the form of a spring 35 motor, an electric motor or other power device.

In Fig. 2 the belt 21 is shown diagrammatically. One or more electric light bulbs 24, or any other source of illumination, is placed behind that part of the belt which passes by the sight open- 40 ing, and reflectors 25 may be employed in connection with the electric light bulbs to direct the rays of light towards the sight opening in the front wall of the case, whereby the transparent letters or characters formed in or by the plates 45 22 may be made perfectly legible and distinct in the dark as well as the light.

The belt 2| is desirably composed of two closely spaced flexible upper bands 26 and a flexible lower U shaped band 2'! (see Figs. 3 and 4) 50 connected by upright plate spacing members 28. The bands and spacing members may be composed of leather or other suitable belting so as to enable the belt to pass around the rollers, and the character displaying plates are flexible 55 so that they may pass around the rollers. The upright plate spacing members 28 are desirably H shaped in cross-section as seen in Fig. 5, and each may be composed of two short strips secured together along their. median lines by a row of stitches 29, which stitches may also be used to fasten the plate spacing members 28 to the bands 26, 21. The bands and plate spacing members provide rectangular spaces 30 in which are received the character displaying plates 22, which may be slid down through the slots between the bands 26 and down through the grooves in the plate spacing members 28, bringing the lower edge portions of the plates into the groove formed in the U shaped lower band 21.

The character display plates may be constructed in various ways. For instance, the bodies 3| thereof may be made of thin flexible sheet metal, cardboard or the like as shown in Fig. 3 and the body of each plate may be cut out to define a letter or other character as at 32. To the rear face of the body 3| is adhesively secured a thin, transparent sheet 33 such as Cellophane, and it may have any desirable color. An assortment of character display plates containing the various letters of the alphabet, digits, etc. may accompany each sign so that the user thereof may readily' set up any display matter which is particularly desirable for advertising his goods.

Between the words displayed, opaque plates 33 are placed in the belt so as to prevent light from passing through the spaces between the plates that display the words. The plate spacing members 28 and opaque plates 33 exclude all light except that which passes through the transparent letters or characters, thereby preventing any un pleasant streaks of light to escape through the sight opening at the front of the case.

In Figs. 6 and '7 a fragment of a link belt 2N is shown, and in this form of invention the links are provided with upwardly extended socket members Zl adapted to receive tongues 22' formed upon the lower edges of the character displaying plates 22*. These plates, like the plates 22, have opaque surfaces formed with transparent portions 32 which define the outlines of the letters of the alphabet or other characters, and the body portion of each plate is formed with a flap 34 along one edge that extends over the adjacent edge of the adjacent plate to cover the gap therebetween so as to prevent any light from passing through the gap between the plates. In this form of plate the body may be formed of glass or other transparent material 3| and the outline of the character may be formed by painting the surface of the body around the outline of the letter or character as at 33 so as to leave that part transparent.

In the form of the invention illustrated in Figs. 8 to 14 inclusive, the invention is shown as applied to a stationary sign. In this form a rectangular frame l6 is provided and in said frame is supported a stationary plate holding member 35. Said member is desirably composed of several sets of upper and lower spaced strips 25 21 each set being connected by upright plate spacing H bars 28 soldered or otherwise rigidly secured at their ends to the strips 26 21 Between above and below the sets of strips are strips or sheets 36 extending the entire length of the frame and serving to exclude light from the spaces between the several rows of letters. The sheets 36 may be soldered to or may form part of the rear strips 2'1 and the forwardly disposed strips 2! have their lower edges secured to the rear strips 2'! or to the sheets 36 so as to provide grooves for the reception of the lower ends of the character displaying plates as in the other form hereinbefore described.

. .The sign is made up by placing the letters,

which form words, in the spaces between the plate spacing bars '28 and as in the other form described, and opaque plates 33 are placed in the unoccupied spaces so as to prevent the light from passing through said spaces. In this form of the invention the character displaying plates 22 may be formed of opaque material having cut-out portions to define transparent letmrs and transparent colored or clear thin sheets 33, such as Cellophane or. the like, are adhesively secured to the rear sides of the bodies of the plates (see Figs. 13 and 14).

This form of invention-may be supported in show windows or wherever desired, and the light issuing from illuminating fixtures within the store may be used to illuminate the sign from behind, or, if desired, electric light bulbs and reflectors may be placed behind the sign, as in the form of the invention first above described.

With either form of sign, the display may be changed as often as is found desirable. Thus in eifect a different sign may be presented daily or as often as required.

From the above it is apparent that a very interesting sign is provided which attracts the attention of passersby. It may be made especially attractive by employing colored, transparent backing behind the cut-out portions of the character display plates.

I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. A sign comprising a pair of horizontal plate holding members, a grooved plate holding member 'therebelow, upright grooved plate spacing members extending between and secured to said upperand lower plate holding members, character displaying plates removably held in the spaces between said members, said plates having opaque surface portions outlining transparent portions defining characters.

2. A sign comprising a flexible, endless belt, having upper and lower plate holding bands and spaced transverse plate spacing members secured at their ends to said upper and lower bands, said bands and spacing members providing grooves to receive the edge portions of character displaying plates, and flexible character displaying plates removably held in the grooves and disposed in the spaces formed by the bands and plate spacing members, said plates having opaque surface portions outlining transparent portions which define characters.

' OTTO W. HARMS. 

